WHY MOM
Freda’s POV
I stood at the edge of the Moonblade pack’s territory, my heart pounding in my chest. It had been so long, too long, since I last saw my mother. I can’t lie, I was scared and happy at the same time. I just hope everything turns out well
And now, after all these years, I am back. I was finally here to see her. I never saw this coming.
I took a deep breath and stepped into the pack land.
“Who are you?” A voice came from behind and I immediately turned back to see two wolves and three guards fully ready to attack me, without hesitation I answered, “I’m Freda, daughter of Winston, Alpha of the Crescent pack”
“We’ve been expecting you, follow us we’ll take you to the pack house” They replied and started walking without a word.
I could see the pack house ahead, and my legs felt like they might give out. What would she say? Would she even be happy to see me? What if she wasn’t the person I remembered? What if I wasn’t?
As I approached the entrance, the door swung open, and there she was,my mother.
“My baby,” she shouted, seems like she has been waiting.
I froze, my eyes locking onto hers. Her face was just as I remembered it, though there were more lines now, she still looked young.
“I—I can’t believe it’s you,” I stammered, trying to hold back the tears threatening to fall from my eyes.
She stepped forward, hesitating for just a moment, then wrapped her arms around me. The moment she touched me, I couldn’t hold it anymore, and I fell into her arms, sobbing. It was like all the years of missing her, all the confusion and hurt, came rushing to the surface at once.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered, her voice quavering. “I’m so sorry for leaving you. You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”
I pulled back slightly, looking into her eyes, asking the questions I always wanted to ask. “Why, Mom? Why did you leave? Why didn’t you take me with you?”
She took a deep breath and brushed a strand of hair behind my ear. “The pack… they didn’t want me to be their Luna. Not as a human. Most especially your grandfather, he didn’t think I was enough for the pack and he was ready to send us away, your father won’t be Alpha so I had no choice to go away, I can’t let your dad abandon his position all because of me.”
I stared at her, processing the words. The fact that she made that huge sacrifice punch me in my guts. She hadn’t just left because she wanted to. She had been forced out, forced to leave me behind. I had spent so many years resenting her for abandoning me, and now… now it all felt different.
“I didn’t know…” I whispered, my voice breaking. “I thought you just… left.”
“I would never leave you by choice,” she said, pulling me close again. “I’ve thought about my little princess every single day since I left. I’m so sorry, Freda.”
We stood there for a while, just holding each other, both of us trying to mend the years of separation with that one embrace. It wasn’t enough to fix everything, but it was a start.
……………………………………
After hugging for so long, she took me to her cabin and we moved into the kitchen, where the smell of spices and herbs filled the air as we cooked dinner together. Well she wanted me to rest but I wasn’t tired and I wanted to help out.
I couldn’t stop smiling as we worked side by side, chopping vegetables and mixing ingredients, like we had done when I was a child. It felt almost… normal. For the first time in what felt like forever, I didn’t feel the weight of everything I had been through. I was just a daughter, cooking with her mom.
As we sat down to eat, I realized I was happy, truly happy. It felt new, but I wasn’t going to question it.
“Freda,” my mom said softly, breaking the comfortable silence. “I know I can’t make up for all the time we lost, but I’m glad you’re here now. I hope… I hope this can be your home for a while.”
I smiled at her, my heart swelling with warmth. “I’d like that, Mom.”
After dinner, she showed me to a room, the guest room. It wasn’t much, but it was cozy, and for the first time in weeks, I felt safe. As I unpacked my things, I found a bag my best friend Kara had given me when I left. Buried at the bottom of it was a letter. I tore it open, in a hurry eager to see what she wrote, and my heart nearly stopped when I read the first line.
**Dear Freda,
Congratulations! I am delighted to inform you that you have been accepted for admission to Bachelor in Early childhood education at NYU.**
My eyes widened, and I let out a small gasp. It was my acceptance letter! The other school I had applied to after Elmwood College. For a moment, I couldn’t believe it,I was going to college! I had been so caught up in everything, running from the vampire kingdom, from Damien that I had almost forgotten I had applied.
I clutched the letter to my chest and for the first time in a long time I was extremely happy.
